Italian electronic identity card (CIE) from the consulate

The carta d’identità elettronica, the CIE, is the Italian identity card in its electronic form: a polycarbonate card with a chip which holds the photograph, the fingerprints and the data of the holder, valid as an identity document in Italy, as a travel document in the European Union and in a number of other countries, and as a digital identity for the online services of the Italian State. The consulates issue it to the citizens registered in their AIRE, and since the summer of 2026 it has become the only identity card which allows an Italian to cross a border, because the paper card has ceased to be valid for travel.

Who qualifies

The consulate issues the card only to an Italian citizen registered in the AIRE of its district, whose data already appear in the national population register, the ANPR, and whose codice fiscale has been validated by the Agenzia delle Entrate. A citizen born abroad must have had the birth transcribed in an Italian comune, and a citizen who has moved must have updated the address through the FAST IT portal before booking, because the card is printed with the address on record. An application made before the registration in the AIRE has been completed by the comune is refused at the appointment, which is why the state of the registers is verified first.

The card is issued to a person who holds no other valid identity card, to a person whose card has expired or is about to expire, and to a person whose card has been lost, stolen or damaged. The Consulate General in London accepts the application for a card which replaces the paper card, in every case in which the paper card is the only one held.

The appointment

In London the application is made in person, by appointment booked through the Prenot@mi portal, where the consulate releases new dates on the evenings from Sunday to Thursday. One booking covers up to five members of a household, children included, and the Ministry requires at least fifteen days between the request and the appointment. The applicant brings one photograph to the international standard, the previous card, or another identity document even if expired, the police report and the consular form of loss where the card has been lost or stolen, and a British debit card for the fee, which from 1 October 2026 is 18.90 pounds for a first issue or a renewal and 23.30 pounds for a replacement after loss or theft, with the amounts adjusted each quarter to the exchange rate.

At the counter the officer verifies the identity, takes the photograph, the signature and, from the age of twelve, the fingerprints. The card is not produced at the consulate: it is printed by the Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato in Rome and sent by registered post to the address of residence, with a tracking number, usually within two or three weeks of the appointment. The applicant leaves with a paper receipt, which serves as identification in Italy only and not for travel, and with the first half of the PIN and PUK codes. The second half arrives with the card.

Children

A child obtains the card with the consent of both parents, whatever their marital status, on the consular form for minors. A parent who is a citizen of the European Union may sign the form and attach a copy of the identity document without attending. A parent who is not, and a British parent is in that position, signs in person at the consulate or at an honorary consulate, or before a British notary with the legalisation of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, or before an Italian public official. Where a parent has died, the death certificate is produced, and where the consent of the other parent cannot be obtained the social office of the consulate is approached before booking. A child under twelve need not attend if a recent document with a comparable photograph is produced, and gives no fingerprints in any case.

Validity and what the card shows

The card is valid for three years for a child under three, for five years from three to eighteen and for ten years from eighteen. Since 30 July 2026 a card issued to a person who has reached the age of seventy has unlimited validity, under a decree of February 2026 converted into law in April: the card bears the word illimitata in place of the expiry date, although the certificate which allows its use for the online services lasts ten years, after which a new card is needed for that purpose alone.

The card shows the address of residence abroad as recorded in the AIRE, the codice fiscale and the place and date of birth. It is an identity document and not a certificate of residence, so that a change of address, even to another country or to Italy, does not require a new card. It shows no marital status and no married surname, because Italian law knows one name for each person, the name of the birth record.

Travel

The electronic card is accepted for entry into the member States of the European Union, into Iceland, Norway and Switzerland, and into the countries which have agreed to accept it by bilateral arrangement, listed in the country sheets of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It is not a passport, and it is not accepted for the United Kingdom by a citizen who holds no status under the EU Settlement Scheme: the holder of settled or pre-settled status may still enter with the card, everyone else enters with a passport and, since 2025, with the electronic travel authorisation.

From 3 August 2026 the paper identity card is no longer valid for travel abroad, whatever expiry date it bears, under the European regulation of 2025 on the security of identity cards and the Italian decree of June 2026 which applied it. The paper card is still accepted as identification in Italy and at the consulates until 31 January 2027, and a comune may issue, in a proven urgency, a provisional document valid for travel for six months, which some countries do not accept. A citizen abroad who holds only a paper card therefore applies for the electronic one, or travels on the passport.

The card as a digital identity

With the CieID application on a telephone equipped with NFC, the card gives access to the online services of the Italian public administration and of the private bodies which accept it, in the same way as SPID and in its place. The access has three levels: a username and password, a code sent to the telephone, or the reading of the card itself through the telephone. A resident abroad, whose foreign number does not always receive the Italian codes, activates the third level directly by reading the card, with the full PIN, and uses the application from then on. The PUK unlocks the PIN after three wrong attempts, and both codes are recovered through the application if lost.

The card from a comune

Since 1 June 2026 a citizen registered in the AIRE may also request the card at an Italian comune, under the law of January 2026 on consular services, booking through the national agenda of the Ministry of the Interior or attending where the comune allows it. A comune other than the one of the AIRE registration asks that comune for a clearance, and the card is posted to the address abroad or, in some countries, delivered through the consulate. For a citizen who spends part of the year in Italy this is often quicker than the consular appointment.

If you are not sure that your registration in the AIRE and your record in the ANPR are in order, send us a copy of your previous card or passport and your current address. We verify the position before you book, so that the appointment is not refused at the counter.